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ensconce

/ɛnˈskɑns/
IPA guide

Other forms: ensconced; ensconcing; ensconces

If you ensconce yourself somewhere, you settle in for quite a while, such as when you're home with the flu and ensconce yourself on the couch with the remote control, tissues, your phone, and a big glass of orange juice.

Ensconce dates to the 1580s, when it literally meant "to cover with a fort." It isn't quite clear whether the word can be traced to French or Dutch, which has a word schans that describes "earthwork." Today, you don't need a protective structure like a fort in order to be ensconced, but the idea of being surrounded is key to the word's meaning.

Definitions of ensconce
  1. verb
    fix firmly
    “He ensconced himself in the chair”
    synonyms: settle
    see moresee less
    type of:
    lay, place, pose, position, put, set
    put into a certain place or abstract location
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